Green Garlic
 

Anyone cook with your green garlic?

I dried some leafy tops and ground them in a food processor. Smells great, but I haven't tried it in a recipe yet.

If you'd like to grow your own for next spring, all you need to do this fall is take a whole head of garlic [those softneck kinds from the store will do just fine] and plant it so the top of the head is about 3-4 inches under the soil. You'll get a clump of stalks, as many stalks as there are cloves. Make sure you harvest before the bulbs get to big.

Earl, will this work in the South as well? I don't know much about garlic...

Suze,
It should work. I've got garlic growing in my garden now that was sent to me from Georgia. In the Fall [Dec.???] You can also plant a bed for a second year harvest by just planting single garlic cloves and letting them mature into heads, leave them in the ground, and let the heads grow into clumps the second year. [/img]

Thanks, Earl. Sounds easy enough -- I'll give it a go.

Earl, I did! I made a green garlic, leek, and asparagus soup. It was fantastic -- my husband wants me to plant green garlic this year so I can make it again, so I guess I'll have to find seeds or starts somewhere. If anyone has a suggestion on where to find it, speak up!

White Asparagus and Green Garlic Soup

Yield: 6 servings

* 2 T butter
* 1 bunch green garlic, washed thoroughly and roughly chopped
* 3 leeks, washed and roughly chopped
* 2 bunches white asparagus
* 1 cup white wine
* 6 cups clear vegetable stock
* 2 cups half-and-half
* 1/2 cup Fontina cheese, grated
* 2 sprigs fresh thyme
* 2 ounces chives, chopped

Heat butter on med-low until melted. Add green garlic in and cook 5 minutes. Add leeks and continue cooking until translucent, being careful not to brown ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Add white wine, set to simmer, and reduce until almost dry.

While wine is reducing, snap tops off asparagus and reserve. (Optional to produce smoother soup: peel asparagus stems.) Snap the rest of the asparagus into 1" pieces.

Add white asparagus pieces (not tips) and vegetable stock. Simmer until all ingredients are tender.

Add heavy cream and simmer for 10 more minutes. Do not allow to boil.

Purée in batches or use a stick blender to puree. If you prefer a smoother soup, strain. Return to saucepan and add asparagus tips and Fontina. Check seasoning, add salt if necessary, and finish with the fresh thyme. When asparagus tips are tender, pour soup into bowl and garnish with chopped chives.



Val

Oh, I see you did give a source, Earl -- the grocery store! LOL!

Val,
Remind me, this Fall I'll bring you some bulbils from some of my hardneck garlic. To make a green garlic bed scatter the bulbils in the Fall and cover with mulch. Give them two years and they'll give you plenty of green garlic. Hardneck garlic has what's called a scape, kinda like an onion, a tall stem that produces the bulbils on top.

I made some chili yesterday with it, yum!

You can dice GG into rounds, steam it and freeze. Also dry it and make garlic powder out of it.

Earl, when do I need to remind you? :D

Val

Val,
About a week before the taste fest. :-)

Earl, whoops! Forgot to remind you!

Val

Earl - I'm getting overwhelmed trying to decide on garlic varities. I'm suffering from option paralysis. What do you grow?